Electrical connector.



O. SCHAEFER.

ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 20, 1914.

1,21@,851 o Patented J an. 2, 1917.

WITNESSES m/ VE/V TOR /4 ATTORNEY OTTO SCHAEFER, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR.

Specification of Letters' Patent.

Patented J an. 2, 19171.

Application filed November 20, 1914. Serial No. 873,118.

construction of the means and devices,

whereby the terminals of the electrical conductors, which carry the electric current from. a battery or other source of current to the said portable incandescent lamp or other current consuming device, are electrically connected to the said current consuming devices in order to provide a safe and reliable supply of current thereto.

Myinvention is advantageously adapted for use in connection with portable eletric incandescent lamps for miners use, wherein the electric current actuating the incandescent bulb is furnished by a storage or other battery carried by the miner and particularly in such types of the said lamps, wherein the casing or other protective device, which surrounds the electric incandescent bulb, is made of metal and is itself included within and made part of one of the branches of the electric circuit.

My invention has for its object to provide a terminal connector of improved construction For such lamps, which, while simple,

. compact and or few parts and readily accessible for examination, afiords a safe and reliable support for the extremities of the electrical conductors and is constructed in such a manner, that it does not, as was the case with the constructions heretofore provided, have to be located in a definite predetermined position with respect to themetallic lamp casing for the purpose of being electrically connected thereto, but that the said electrical connection can be made on any point or" its circumference, as hereinafter more particularly described.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein Figure 1 shows a longitudinal cross-section of my improved connector, illustrating also its position in a 'miners lamp of the character described, while-Fig. 2 is a section at right angles to'that shown in Fig. l and along the line 2, 2 in Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrow, and Fig. 3 a perwective view of one element of my connector.

As shown in Fig. 1, my connector compr1ses a cylindrical piece a of hard rubber or other insulating material, which is provided with an outwardly extendingflange or rim a. A flat metal ring a tightly surrounds the cylindrical portion a and extends for .a certain distance beyond the outward edge thereof. Closely adjacent to the said p1ece a is arranged another insulating piece 6, of the same general dimensions as the piece a and also provided with an outwardly extending flange or rim 6'. When the two pieces a and b are in close contact with each other, the portion Z) is adapted to slip into the metal ring so that the latter abuts against the flange 6 and is securely held in position between the flanges a and b. The said insulating pieces a and b are adapted to be tightly held together by a metallic screw 03, which enters into a recessed hole bored through the center of the piece a and screws into a' central threaded hole registering therewith provided in the piece 6, the recessed part ofthe hole in the piece an accommode-ting the head of the said screw d. The screw serves-also as a terminal for one of the electrical conductors e of the current "furnished by an electric battery (not shown), the extremity of the said conductor passing through registering-holes in the pieces a and b, issuing-in the recessed portion of the aforesaid central hole in the piece a, being wound around the shank of the said screw (Z and tightly pressed against the head thereof by tightening the said screw. The other current conducting wire f is in electrical contact with the metallic ring d, mentioned above, which connection ,is made in. the following manner: As shown in Fig. '3, which is a perspective View of the insulating piece [5, the said piece is provided with two parallel holes 9 and it, so bored that they issue on the circumference of the cylindrical portion 6. The extremity of the current conductor f is introduced from the rear into the hole g, and passed along the circumference of the portion b, into the hole It. lhe location of the wire f is shown clearly in Fig. 2. It is thus evithe more positive because the wire 7 has a certain degree of resiliency, which further tends to press it against the ring 03.

The screw d, as one contact of my connector, is shown in Fig. 1, to be in electrical contact with the central base contact 70, of an incandescent lamp 1 by means of an auxiliary contact piece carrying a metallic rod 39, which is not a part of my invention; The other contact of my connector, the ring 03, is in metallic contact with the-metal casing 1' of the lamp by means of the metallic screw 2'. The metallic casing makes contact with the shell part Q of the base of the incandescent lamp Z through a metal spring 3, which arrangement is also not a part of my invention. It is thus evident that my connector does not have'to be located in any definite or predetermined position with respect to the metallic screw 6, as, by reason of one of the current terminals being connected to the metal ring d, the metallic screw 2' will make electrical contact at any point on the circumference of the said ring Wherever it may happen to touch.

I do not desire to limit myself to the precise construction with arrangement of parts shown in the drawings, as it is evident that various changes of form may be devised without departing from the spirit of my invention;

Having thus described my invention I claim: I

1. In combination with a portable electric current consuming device provided with a tubular metallic casing inclosing the said current consuming device and adapted to serve aspa'rt of one branch of the electric circuit, a current terminal device, comprising two-part insulating means supporting the extremities of two electrical conductors, a central metallic, contact member carried by the said insulating means'and holding the same in position and connected with the extremity of one of the said electrical conductors,v the. said contact member being adapted to make contact with one of the terminals of the said current consuming de vice and an annular metallic contact member supported on the circumference of the said insulating means and connected with the ,ex t'remity of the other electrical conductor, the said tubular casing being adapted to make contact with the said annularjcontact mem lating means supporting the extremities of two electrical conductors, a central metallic contact member carried by the said insulat ing means holding the same in position and connected with the extremity of one of the said electrical conductors, the said contact member being adapted to make contact with one of the terminals of the said lighting apparatus, and an annular metallic contact member supported on the circumference of the said insulating means and connected with the extremity of the other electrical conductor, the said tubular casing being adapted to make contact with the said annular contact member at any one-point of the circumference of the said annular member. '3. In combination with a portable electric miners cap lamp having a tubular metallic casing inclosing the incandescent bulb and adapted to serve as part of one of the branches of an electric circuit, a current terminal device comprising two flanged disks of insulating material supporting the extremities of two electrical conductors, a central metallic screw holding the said disks together, the said screw being in electrical contact with the extremity of one of the said electrical conductors, a metallic ring held between the flanged portions of the said disks and insulated from the said casing, the said ring being in electrical contact with the extremity of the other electrical conductor, the said casing being adapted to make contact'with the said ring at any one point of the circumference of the said ring. Signed at New York city in the county of New York and State of New Yor OTTO SCHAEFER. 

